The Indiana Department of Education is seeking a waiver from a federal law allowing it to relax restrictions on how it spends millions from the U.S. Department of Education.
State education officials filed the waiver Monday, asking for flexibility from specific requirements of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Congress passed the measure in 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s “War on Poverty.”
Red states like Indiana, Iowa and Oklahoma are seeking waivers with Indiana saying it would empower innovation through flexibility.
Indiana officials say the waiver would give the DOE greater flexibility in its use of federal ESEA funding and ease administrative burdens on Indiana schools.
It mirrors President Trump’s vision for returning education funding and policies to states.
“With the opportunity to return education back to the states, we had a clear choice to make in Indiana: continue with the status quo or seize this moment to gain the flexibilities needed to remove federal barriers to more urgently move the needle for students,” said state Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said in a release.
“As a state, we are leaning in to seize this moment, and today, our message to Washington is clear: Indiana is ready and eager, so give us the flexibility to keep driving forward for Indiana students.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon has 120 days to respond to Indiana’s waiver request.
The specific waivers sought could cut money to rural schools, and merge programs for non-English speaking students and at-risk, neglected or delinquent students from portions of Title 1, Title II and Title IV programs.
In its waiver, Indiana DOE officials said it would roll them into a single block grant, allowing for more efficient management.
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The 19-page waiver request said it costs the state about $2.2 million annually in staff time for the infrastructure needed for federal compliance. The waiver request said about $1.7 million was dedicated to compliance and reporting, rather than classroom initiatives to impact student performance.
The state argued it could then use block grant money in other areas it deems necessary.
The legality of that action has been questioned.
In an April article in Forbes, former senior Indiana education adviser Dale Chu said the ESSA prohibits states from creating block grants to alter federal regulations.
The state DOE said if its waiver is approved, the flexibility would allow it to direct about $25 million in school improvement grants toward “solutions that prioritize access to high-quality educational opportunities — regardless of a student’s current assignment.”
The state said its approach wouldn’t abandon efforts to improve existing schools, “but rather to complement them by ensuring students have timely access to better options.”
If approved, Indiana’s waiver would allow the state to direct its $25 million in school improvement grant money away from traditional districts like Gary to charter schools or private schools.
Earlier this year, the academically struggling Gary Community School Corp. received an $800,000 federally funded Next Generation School Improvement Grant from the Indiana Department of Education to launch improvement initiatives at four low-performing elementary schools.
If the district qualifies for Phase 2, it could receive $3 to $8 million.
Gov. Mike Braun, a staunch Trump backer, heralded the waiver application.
“We can best support Hoosier students when we return education to the states, empower parents with high-quality educational options, get red tape out of the way for educators, and focus on improvement for every student,” he said.
Read the state waiver request at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ajZHlHhhJQzGVNlz1GdM8Nx3hd2uTm5V/view.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.